Hepatic hemangioma

A hepatic hemangioma is a liver mass made of widened (dilated) blood vessels. It is not cancerous.

A hepatic hemangioma is the most common type of liver mass that is not caused by cancer. It may be a birth defect.

Hepatic hemangiomas can occur at any time. They are most common in people in their 30s to 50s. Women get these masses more often than men, and the masses are often bigger.

Babies may develop a type of hepatic hemangioma called benign infantile hemangioendothelioma. This is also called multinodular hepatic hemangiomatosis. This is a rare, noncancerous tumor that has been linked to high rates of heart failure and death in infants. Infants are most often diagnosed by the time they are 6 months old.

Symptoms

Some hemangiomas may cause bleeding or interfere with organ function. Most do not produce symptoms. In rare cases, the hemangioma may rupture.

Exams and Tests

In most cases, hepatic hemangioma is not found until medical images are made of the liver for some other reason. If the hemangioma ruptures, the only sign may be an enlarged liver.